Access to science and technology worldwide is achieved by active participation in open international scientific research, as well as through technological capability that is decisive in catching up with world developments in science and technology. In other words, it is the "national system of innovation" which determines a country's assimilation capacity. The universities, research institutions, the technological infrastructure, industrial training schemes, information networks and technical institutions in general provide the foundation for a solid, steady development. Therefore policies directed toward strengthening the national system of innovation are essential for a catching-up strategy. But even more important is the presence of skilled and experienced people with the necessary connections to the scientific and technological infrastructure of the world at large. this applies to China in particular. Whether or not the technological potential will be developed, depends on the technological and industrial strategies promoted by the Chinese leadership. In addition, the costs and benefits of technological development are affected by the prevalent evolutionary stage of a country's political framework and fiscal regime. There must be a strong coordination between overall economic policies and technology policy. A sucessful management of technology is only possible through a "technological package" including management, financial and marketing skills.

One: Technology Management.- Deng's Reforms 1976-1988.- Domestic and Foreign Technology Factors Influencing Assimilation and Diffusion Capabilities.- From Technology Transfer to Technology Management.- Changing Chinese Thinking about Technology Transfer.- Two: Case Studies.- The Development of the Chinese Steel Industry.- Technology Transfer in China: The Case of Oxygen-Generating Equipment in Steel Industry, 1978-1988.- Three: China and the World in the Nineties.- A Summary of Global Technology Trends of Possible Strategic Interest to the People's Republic of China.- China and the World in the Nineties, Trends in New Technologies and Their Implications for China toward the 1990s.- China's Strategy for Agricultural Development in the 1990s.- Scientific and Technological Progress and the Revitalization of China's Economy.- China and the World in the Nineties, Deepening Reform for Technological Progress in China.- The Rapid Expansion of Economic Information in the 1990s and the Challenge to China's Economic Reform.- Contributors.